Branched stream control



y 1945- c. 1.. SAVIDGE 2,380,676

BRANCHED STREAM CONTROL Filed Dec. 27, 1943 EE I MW [LINTDN L. AVIDEE- Patented July 31, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BRANCHED STREAM CONTROL Clinton L. Savidge, Toledo, Ohio, assig-nor to Mitchell & Smith, 'Inc., Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 27, 1943, Serial No. 515,864

2 Claims.

This invention relates to flowing molten material with controls for stream dimension and temperature.

This invention has utility when incorporated in conjunction with fibering or blow nozzles, and involves stream subdivider means for the respect1ve nozzle capacities for thereby building up to take greater volume from the molten. stream source or cupola. Appropriate temperatur drop 1 .the invention herein;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged viewof the stream divider from the right in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a divider receiving one stream and uniformly converting such single stream into four branches;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line IVIV,' Fig. 1, showing the chambered structure for handling therethru a temperature controlling medium; and

Fig. 5 shows a gang of subdividers in series parallel relation.

A cylindrical cupola l is shown with an opening 2 into which is mounted facing means 3 having therein a draw-off port 4 for a stream 5. In the practice of producing mineral wool, as from slag or various rocks, care may be exercised in providing the ingredients for a prescribed or predetermined type of melt. Upon stabilizing such factors, there is efficiency in operating the cupola at maximum rate for fusing with timely flowingoff or withdrawal, as important economies for production cost reduction. The e p ce has been that it is advantageous in the drawing-off to have but a single port. At high fluxing temperatures, the molten glass-like stream has a high flow rate. Such stream is readily retarded into a syrupy mass befor congealing. Accordingly, under the practices herein, there is delicate regulation which may only slightly lag the stream as delivered to the nozzle, but still retain the uniform fluidity to receive the blowing by the steam into threads and thereby avoiding fine glass globules or beads or seeds. 1

position close up to the port 4. The flowing stream 5 over a lip ll adjacent the port 4 is into a minor chamber, pocket, or reservoir l2 in top l3 region of the chambered divider member III. From the reservoir l2 it is-important to have branches equalized under the preferred practice hereunder, and that such be app t y equally spaced. For directing these branches, ap- 'plicant has found it helpful to have such branches not entirely free falling, but at lest to some extent directed and supported in the spreading flow directions. The member I0: is. shown with a pair of front grooves or subdivided stream ways I4 and two end ways I5. Notches in the top l3 extend to slight lips I6 to dam a shallow volume of molten material in the reservoir l2 against flow thereover into the respective ways l4, l5. Top section ll, between the front ways 14 is the full l2 as well as to observe that it be functioning properly. With the grooves I5 at approximately 60 slant there is considerably more support as well as temperature control than for the grooves l4 of approximately half the slant for the grooves l5. This means that spray or fibering nozzles 19 are spaced somewhat lower or farther from the grooves l4 than are fibering nozzles 20 for the streams from the grooves IS. The respective nozzles I9, 20, are adjusted and properly directed in their location upon a support, and are individually regulated as to the steam or fiber effecting fiuid by valves from a main supply duct or pipe 23.

Suppl'ementally a temperature controlling medium, as water, may have flow thereof regulated by a valve 24 as to the rate of flow or volume passing by the pipe 25 into a chamber 26 in the member ID. As such medium performs its function, say of cooling for the member [0, it passes therefrom as a spill by pipe 21.

With similar molten material, applicant's experience for the stream drop was 10" (Patent 2,295,971) to the nozzles. Herein the lip H approximately contacts the top 13, and the spacing from the spill of the grooves 15 may be 3" or even less. The the proper adjustment for nozzles l9 may have their spacing say the grooves l4.

The member l0 quadruples the nozzl capacity for fibering the outflow from the cupola I. For

clearance is sufficient to locate further building up fibering rate, a subdivider member 28 (Fig. which may or may not be chambered for temperature control, has streams 29 therefrom to members In, and stream 30 to a three stream member 3!. Accordingly with the member 28 in series with the respective members I0, 3!, III, which latter three are in parallel, eleven nozzles may be supplied with streams.

Of'practical importance in the disclosure and operations herein is the stream branch volume, its direction control with limited free-fall, which under the temperature control, permits the proximity for the fibering nozzles so close to the groove directed stream that full fibering is stabilized. The furnace operation is for having the molten material fully fluid. At such free flow rate and thinness, the acute problem is to get the fiberefiecting =blow efie'ctive thruout the stream, to minimize or eliminate beads or seeds of small glass-like beads. The uniform character of the melt is more readily retained at this high temperature of fluidity. By bringing about a retarding of the stream after leaving the cupola or furnace, some temperature drop is effected. With the chambered block or member providing this pool, supplemental lowering'may be had from water cooling. In practice, eflicient fibering has been achieved at 500# per hour with a'nozz1e..

This seems to be the nozzle efflcient capacity, and is effected after. some drop in the temperature of the stream.v If such be free falling in the open,

it is sensitive to deflection, and as so developing,.

commercial output, there is understood the value coming from four nozzles as stable and taking but a minimum of attention for handling 2000# per hour. Further control takes into account the melt rate or capacity for the furnace with the particular materials being fluxed. With such determined, the feeder members for branching stream control may be built up to conform thereto. This means that for the eleven stream branch set up of Fig. 5, 5500# per hour may be treated.

What is claimed and it is desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In the flowing of molten material for receiving treatment, stream condition control from a flow supply comprising a member having from its top, in an adjoining series three downwardly diverging sides, there being notches in the top communicating with grooves in the respective sides, said top forming a reservoir bounded by lips at the respective notches for overflow ofmolten material p001 in the reservoir to be by way of the notches and then downwardly and outwardly along the grooves in directing free fall approximately uniformly of streams away from the member.

2. Feeder stream control for mineral wool fibering nozzle treatment comprising a generally polygonal -member having a reservoir in its top forming a pool-providing pocket for molten material, three downwardly diverging sides of the member having grooves extending downwardly from the top with notches in the top extending to connect the respective grooves with the reservoir, there being lips at the termini of the notches at the reservoir to retain a pool of the molten material in the reservoir with how wayfor molten material above the lips as accumumeans in communication with the chamber to promote material temperature control.

CLINTON L. SAVIDGE. 

